Iran press/Iran: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, on Friday at the tripartite summit of Iran, Russia and Turkey on Syria in Tehran said that “The unlawful presence and intervention of the United States in Syria, which has led to the continuation of insecurity in the country, should end immediately”.
"Today’s summit is being held in continuation of the successful efforts of the three countries within the framework of the Astana Process to effectively confront terrorism and put an end to the Syrian crisis, based on the demands of the majority of the Syrians. This summit is also an opportunity to discuss our joint actions in the current and future stages",Rouhani noted.
"Given the complexities of the Syrian crisis, it was very important for the three countries of Iran, Russia and Turkey to achieve a common framework based on the fundamental principles of preserving territorial integrity and integrity of Syria and respect for national sovereignty and the right of the Syrian people to determine the future of their country in attempting to quell the flames of war in Syria", Iranian President added.
"From the outset, we have emphasised the inefficiency of a military solution to ending the Syrian crisis, and we are now pleased that after seven years of the Syrian crisis and based on the experience gained, the settlement of the Syrian crisis and other similar crises in the region through peaceful means has become a popular belief among the dominant actors. Our efforts over the past years, especially after concentrating activities in the context of the Astana Process, have always been based on facilitating Syrian-Syrian dialogue and encouraging the government and the opposition to join the process", Iranian President Hassan Rouhani concluded.
The three leaders have met twice in Sochi and Istanbul in the framework of Astana Syria Talks.
The first of the trilateral summits was held last year in Russia's Black Sea city Sochi on Nov. 22. The second trilateral summit held in Istanbul.
The Third summit came as the Syrian army’ is preparing for attacking Idlib, the last stronghold of terrorists in the north.
Syrian government forces have been massing around the country's last rebel bastion. Capturing Idlib would put the vast majority of the country under Syria government control.
The main rebel group in the area is Hay'et Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an al-Qaeda affiliate.
Iran, alongside Russia and Turkey, is a guarantor of the ceasefire regime in Syria. The three guarantor states initiated the Astana Process on January 23, 2017, establishing de-escalation zones in an effort to restore calm in the region and improve the humanitarian situation in war-torn Syria.
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